Paul Martin's Business Update - September 19th, 2014

A new economic forecast has Saskatchewan in a rare position – the bottom of the pack.

The economists at BMO Bank of Montreal have just updated their quarterly forecast for the provinces and it has Saskatchewan expected to expand by only one per cent this year. That matches Newfoundland as the two fall behind everyone else.

Interestingly, though, next year the bank sees a strong rebound for Saskatchewan with growth of 2.7 per cent, second best in the nation behind only Alberta. The primary reason for the fall this year is the grain crop. After last year’s record output, we have seen the crop fall back to more normal or below normal levels. That has kicked a dint in the year-over-year comparison.

Even so, Saskatchewan is still in positive territory for the year which points to the strength of the remainder of the economy which more than offset the drop from a record grain harvest last year.

Despite the pullback in GDP growth, however, new job creation remains buoyant with Saskatchewan slated to be second to Alberta both this year and next.

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